Here’s to Brother Coast Guard, Brother Coast Guard, Brother Coast Guard – Here’s to Brother Coast Guard he’s with us today, he’s with us God bless him, God bless him he needs it. Here’s to Brother Coast Guard, he’s with us today.
Today, August 4, our Nation celebrates the 228th birthday of the United States Coast Guard. On this day in 1790 the Revenue Cutter Service started their transitioned in to the United States Coast Guard of today. The superb legacy of Kappa Alpha Psi® Fraternity, Inc. has lived on for years and I have the utmost confidence our deep rich heritage will continue to thrive in our Coast Guard.
The Coast Guard has made their brand stand out among the elite. During the catastrophic events that surfaced following Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, numerous Coast Guard Kappa men played significant roles in assisting to restore peace and continuity to the devastated areas in Texas, Florida, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. These brothers followed the military footprints left behind from several of our illustrious Founders and military brothers before them who deployed / mobilized in every war America has been a part of, to include World Wars I and II, Korea, Vietnam, Persian Gulf, and Iraqi Freedom.
Across the world, Kappas are setting the pace for Coast Guard leadership. The Coast Guard is unique as it has a college scholarship program known as the College Student Pre-Commissioning Initiative (CSPI) – designed to attract talented young college sophomores and juniors from Minority Serving Institutions (MSI) to ensure strength through diversity in the officer corps; however, it is open to students of all races and ethnicities, and trains students to serve as commissioned officers in the U. S. Coast Guard upon graduating from college.
Also, the CSPI-Student Loan Repayment Pilot Program (SLRP) expands scholarship opportunities to college seniors, graduate students in their final year of school,and recent graduates of MSI. The CSPI-SLRP program will assist with the repayment of college loans up to $10K per year for up to six years. Information on both programs can be found at www.gocoastguard.com/cspi.
Our Military and Veterans Affairs Commission (MVAC) takes great pride in honoring all five military services and put on a grand event with their inaugural ‘sold out’ Military and Veterans Awards Banquet at our 2017 Conclave in Orlando, FL. I can only imagine what the MVAC will bring when we gather in Philadelphia, PA in 2019.
Please join me in thanking every past and present ‘NUPE in the Guard’ for serving with the Coast Guard’s core values of Honor, Respect and Devotion to Duty. Once again, Happy 228th Birthday to our beloved United States Coast Guard! ‘Semper Paratus’.
Yours in the Bond,,
Thomas L. Battles
Grand Polemarch
Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Inc.
